Advice from a Wedding Florist: Nicole Burbank Events
Photo courtesy of Fatima Elreda Photo
Welcome back everyone! Today I am sitting down virtually with SoCal wedding florist, Nicole Burbank Events! For many of my couples, finding the right wedding florist can be pretty daunting, so I wanted to chat with Nicole about some of the top questions she’s asked and her top tips for designing your floral arrangements. We worked together on this wedding at Mount Palomar, and I was just blown away by her work ethic and passion for weddings. She even camped out on site the night before! Take a look below to learn more about Nicole.
Tell us a little more about yourself, how you got into weddings, and your experience with florals!
I first thought of being a florist after high school and blew it off, only to become a florist years later… should’ve followed my gut! I started by assisting with coordination and floral design then taking on my own weddings while working a desk job in hotel catering and conference services until I could pursue my own business full-time. Over the last several years I have learned so much from other florists, workshops, online lessons, conferences, and with every event and project! I’ve been very fortunate and beyond grateful to have such amazing clients, to connect with a supportive community of florists and other vendors, and for every opportunity to create floral art.
Describe your style of floral design
I’d say my style is a combination of contemporary and vintage designs with serene color palettes, organic movement and natural textures. Sometimes it depends on my mood! Most of the time I’ll be inspired to create something very earthy and uncomplicated with unique product selection, but occasionally I’ll go for something super abstract with bold colors! Above all, I like to create something artistic and magical with intentionally selected elements coming together to tell a story.
How do you help couples bring their wedding floral visions to life?
We start with any inspiration they may have as most couples have already gathered some ideas, usually from Pinterest. If not, we start with the basics: season and location - this will help determine a color palette and product selection. Then we dive a little deeper into what story they are trying to tell with their wedding, whether that’s based around the venue, a vibe, theme, season, color, you name it! Once we have the story nailed down, I create a custom design board to visualize what can be expected and make sure we are all on the same page. Then when the big day comes, the floral magic happens!
What’s the question you get asked the most often about florals?
Probably how to maximize a budget! Everyone is working with some sort of budget so it all depends where flowers are in the list of priorities. We talk about seasonality, substitutions, ways to repurpose, vessel options, add-ons, and what can really be minimized or nixed altogether.
How can you help me pick out what kind of flowers will be used at my wedding?
A lot depends on seasonality in terms of what types of flowers and colors will be available at the time of year the wedding is. We will select a mix of shapes and colors (even fragrances!) that will give the vibes of the story we are trying to tell.
What should couples know about florals and their budget?
Behind the scenes there is a LOT of work, time and expenses that go into floral design and running a business before flowers are even bought and before the designer can be paid. Keep in mind that you get what you pay for and Pinterest is not always small budget-friendly. Talk to your florist about how the budget can be allocated, where you can save and where you can splurge. We need to pay the bills but most of us are very passionate about working with flowers and weddings and will go above and beyond to make it fabulous!
It was such a blast getting to talk with Nicole about florals and everything that goes into her work! If you’re looking for a wedding florist in the SoCal area, I couldn’t recommend Nicole and her team enough. Thanks for joining us and if you have any other questions, feel free to send me a message here!